Flying

Since being certified in 2004, this $17 million midsize jet has become one of Cessna's most popular models. One reason is that it can carry eight passengers almost 2,700 miles. Another is that it can take off and land on short runways. and then there's its intentionally simple suite of technologies, which helps minimize maintenance costs and down time.

The transition from office or home to the cabin of a private aircraft should be effortless and comfortable. With that in mind, designers and engineers continue to seek ways to make business jet cabins as plush and inviting as the environments you've come to appreciate on the ground.

Granted, it's relatively slow for a jet and has limited range. But the 328JET is also a modern, fuel-efficient aircraft with a roomy cabin that climbs quickly and can land on short runways. Plus, it's priced about equal to-or in some cases even less than-what you'd pay for a new turboprop. if it fits your typical missions, it's a model you really ought to consider.

If you fly often via business jet charter, you know that the peak travel days sprinkled throughout the calendar can mean a limited choice of aircraft as well as price increases. But a little planning can go a long way toward minimizing both drawbacks.

Ferry fees have always been part of fractional flying. Now, however, some fractional providers have made changes to their programs that substantially reduce-if not eliminate-the fees for their owners. As a result, these owners enjoy expanded ferry-fee-free travel horizons, and the other fractional providers' may find they need to respond in kind.

The Learjet 60XR is Bombardier's latest iteration of a midsize model that has endured since the 1970s, the decade that gave rise to this category of business jet. Learjet's initial midsize entry was the Model 55.

Over the years, Mitsubishi's MU-2 has attracted a good deal of attention, much of it negative, as the airplane has developed-perhaps unfairly-a reputation for crashing. Often ignored in these instances, however, is the pilot: flying the airplane requires the same discipline and professionalism as flying a high-performance jet.

The fractional share market "has passed its period of rapid growth," according to a report prepared by consulting firm Velocity Group for XOJet, a company that sells flight time in hourly increments. Fractional shareholder growth averaged 2.2 percent per year from 2003 to 2006, but the fractional share fleet actually shrunk a bit, according to Velocity.

Black's Law Dictionary defines "boilerplate" in part as "standard language in a legal document." In fractional contracts, plenty of provisions appear to be just that, and the response from your salesperson when asked about such provisions is likely to be, "Oh, don't worry. That's just boilerplate."

Digital text messaging might be the preferred communications medium of the future, but when it comes to air traffic control (ATC), pilots and their counterparts on the ground still need a live human voice at the other end of the earphones. Texting may be fine for many forms of messages aloft, and in fact, it has been widely used for years by airlines and many business-jet operators.

Quote/Unquote

““Corporate executives should be your core business . . . You need [account executives who are] comfortable with the kind of boardroom leaders that see Learjet as a tool, not a frivolous extravagance for movie stars and their pets.”
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-Advertising executive Pete Campbell to a Learjet executive on the penultimate episode of TV's Mad Men series, set in 1970.